Of Claws and Compassion
by TRikiD
Summary: Huge storms have created a huge mess all over Sodor and Misty Island, so Sir Topham Hatt calls in a new engine from the Mainland to help clean up. But at the same time, a group of mysterious engines stir up trouble and claim that they're looking for a "clawed diesel." This gets Diesel Ten's attention, for he has some unfinished business with the mysterious group.
1. Chapter 1 - A Bad Suggestion

Of Claws and Compassion

Chapter 1 - A Bad Suggestion

Harsh autumn storms and relentless ocean waves had proved fatal, especially for the forests on Sodor and Misty Island. Mud slides had covered countless roads and rails, and fallen trees only added to the huge mess.

And although they would be able to clean up of the mess on Sodor, there weren't nearly enough recourses or volunteers to help the Logging Locos clean up Misty Island. But that didn't mean the Logging Locos weren't going to give their all to clear up their home; after all, no one made messes on their island except them.

Still, a bit of help would have been greatly appreciated by them.

"Hey, I got an idea!" Bash giddily announced after shunting a cart of fallen tree limbs out of the way.

"Since when do you get ideas?" Dash joked with a grin.

Bash scoffed and rolled his eyes, "If you're done mocking me, you should start listening. I was thinking we should ask someone for help, someone who's big."

"Gordon?" Dash guessed.

"No, I'm talking about someone else. He's a leader-."

"Thomas?" Ferdinand piped up.

"No, he's-."

"James?"

"Emily?"

"Spencer?"

"Rheneas?"

"Are you two done?" Bash deadpanned, interrupting Dash and Ferdinand's frequent guesses, "What I was going to say, is that we need Diesel Ten's help."

"Diesel Ten?!" Dash and Ferdinand gasped in unison.

"Are you crazy?! That bastard will crush us all in seconds!" Dash quickly stated.

"Not if we stay on his good side," Bash argued.

"A-And we're not allowed ta look for Diesel Ten without Sir Topham Hatt's permission anyway. It's too dangerous without Sir Topham Hatt ta keep that clawed cretin in line," Ferdinand whimpered.

Bash's lips curled into a confident smirk, "We'll be fine. You know what they say: You're only in trouble if you get caught."

* * *

Diesel Ten normally confined himself to small and secluded areas, which surprised the Logging Locos since Misty Island had many more quiet places to hide than Sodor; not that they wanted Diesel Ten hanging around on their island a lot.

Despite Sir Topham Hatt keeping a close eye on him and giving him a good scolding when he did misbehave, Diesel Ten was still quite dangerous and rarely bothered. Even Sir Topham Hatt knew only to request his help when there were huge emergencies, or otherwise risk getting crushed to death by the diesel's giant claw.

But even with those terrifying thoughts racing around in their fireboxes, Bash, Dash and Ferdinand continued on through the tunnel that connected Misty Island and Sodor. Once they were on Sodor, the three engines headed straight for the one place Diesel Ten would consider home: The Dieselworks.

Diesel Ten still prided himself and his fellow diesels greatly, so the Diesel Works was another trophy to him, especially after it was rebuilt and given a grand new design. Although, even with the new design, Diesel Ten always preferred most of the lights in the building to be left off, as to keep the "dark and foreboding" aura of his territory.

And it worked. The Logging Locos still felt their fireboxes run cold as they pulled into the Dieselworks, and the dark and thick thunder clouds in the sky didn't help in regards of making the area look less intimidating. But with their task still at hand, Bash puffed forward and looked around nervously.

"Hello?! Diesel Ten?! Are you here?!" Bash called out, earning no response for a moment.

"We wanna talk to you!" Dash finally spoke up.

"That's right!" Ferdinand couldn't help but add loudly.

But still, there was nothing but silence and the occasional soft rumble of thunder overhead to respond. So, the three engines puffed further into the Dieselworks, but refused to go into the shadows of the building.

"I-I don't think he's here. Let's just go home," Ferdinand fearfully suggested while attempting to back away.

"And leave without giving my precious Pinchy a bit of relief? Now that, Sirs, is just plain rude," came an all-too familiar voice that practically dripped with venom, as the owner of the voice crept out from the shadows with a clank of his claw.

It was none other than Diesel Ten, huge claw, conniving grin and all. The Logging Locos found themselves frozen with fear, to which Diesel Ten took the opportunity to oil closer to them. Even when he seemed amused, Diesel Ten was still capable of being completely unpredictable.

"My poor claw hardly ever finds something suitable enough to relieve the stress in its wires and hydraulics. You know it is," Diesel Ten slowly explained, giving his claw a softer clank.

"W-Well, th-that's because Sir Topham Hatt said-," Bash began with a quiver, but Diesel Ten cut him off with a snap of his claw.

"Oh, shut up!" Diesel Ten seethed through clenched teeth, but exhaled to calm down, "I know what 'big boss' said: No more terrorizing the citizens of Sodor, and no more destroying lives and personal property."

"Th-That's…right," Ferdinand chuckled nervously.

Diesel Ten merely rolled his eyes, remembering how repetitive Ferdinand could be before continuing, "Either way, I am still privileged to finding something _thick_ enough to withstand my strength—and you three must be very thick to come out here all by yourselves. So, pray tell, why have you come to seek an audience with me?"

"Well—everything's a mess after all those storms, and we don't have nearly enough help to clean up Misty Island. So, we thought…" Bash bravely spoke up, but found it difficult to keep speaking under Diesel Ten's harsh gaze, "…w-we thought we'd…ask you…for help."

A heavy silence fell upon them. None of the four engines moved or spoke, for the Logging Locos feared the Diesel Ten's reaction to their request for help. But suddenly, Diesel Ten broke the silence with a dark and deep chuckle while gently grinding his claw.

"You're all thicker than I thought. I don't give a damn about your island, and I certainly couldn't care about you," Diesel Ten spoke softly, as he backed into the shadowy confines of the Dieselworks, "You had better go before I change my mind about letting you leave without any fresh dents."

Dash and Ferdinand were too scared to test Diesel Ten's patience and didn't hesitate to back away, but Bash was still determined to try and get his point across. Too bad his stubbornness clouded his judgment.

"That's not fair! It's not like you have anything better to do! How can you call yourself useful at this point?!" Bash snapped and held his ground, making Dash and Ferdinand freeze in terror. They feared the worst for their friend.

Bash's bold statement also caught Diesel Ten's full attention, and he slowly came back out of the shadows with his teeth clenched and fire in his eyes.

"You, Little Steamie, are no more useful than I am because you are nothing more than a pawn that lacks brain cells," Diesel Ten hissed while approaching Bash, causing the latter to finally realize the danger he was in and slowly back away.

But Diesel Ten kept following him, and his fierce glare was locked with his fearful one as he slowly pushed him out, "I will say this one more time: Leave now before the clean up crew will have more than dead _trees_ to worry about."

After finally getting it through his head, Bash was able to look away from Diesel Ten and flee with Dash and Ferdinand. They wished they could report their encounter to Sir Topham Hatt, but then he would figure out that they went searching for Diesel Ten without his authorization. Diesel Ten was acutely aware of this rule as well, so he grinned triumphantly while watching the three engines puff away in terror, knowing there would be no consequences for him to face in the end.

* * *

**Spoiler alert: This is a Diesel Ten romance fanfic because from what I've seen(I honestly haven't looked that much), there aren't a lot. So, I thought I'd try my best to write a good story, and I hope you'll like it.**

**Until the next chapter, I'm TRikiD, bye-bye!**


	2. Chapter 2 - The Good Diesel

Chapter 2 - The Good Diesel

After their failed attempt to get Diesel Ten to help, the Logging Locos decided to turn to Sir Topham Hatt instead; and all three of them promised to keep their encounter with Diesel Ten a secret.

With the high quantity of fallen trees and mudslides, Sir Topham Hatt was already quite busy with trying to help everyone else. This meant he was stuck at the Sodor Search and Rescue Center, so that he could make preparations and send out teams. And just as Bash, Dash and Ferdinand showed up at the center, Thomas had beaten them to it and rushed up to Sir Topham Hatt.

"Sir, it's an emergency!" Thomas shouted as he came to a screeching halt.

"Thomas, there is far more than just one emergency right now, and there are other urgent matters I must attend to," Sir Topham sighed with exhaustion.

"But it's Henry's Tunnel, Sir! James was pulling a fallen tree on a flatbed, but it fell off and blocked one of the tunnels."

"Yes, I heard about that, and I have made an arrangement with another railroad on the Mainland to lend us some help. They are sending us another engine to help us with the rest of our problems."

"You did?" Bash asked out of surprise, as he and the other two Logging Locos approached.

"We could really use their help, too," Dash added.

"I know you do. Don't worry. This new engine should have arrived at Brendam Docks this morning, and I want you to show them all of the areas that may need their help, Thomas."

"And then, we can take them to Misty Island?" Ferdinand quickly asked.

Sir Topham smiled and nodded, "Of course."

* * *

With this news, Thomas and the Logging Locos raced to Brendam Docks to meet this new engine and hopefully get them onboard to help clean up. Sure, Sir Topham said that he called in this engine, but something at the back of their fireboxes gave them an unsettling and doubtful feeling.

Eventually, they reached the docks and stopped, quickly looking around to find any engine that looked new and unfamiliar. The good news is, it didn't take them long to spot the new engine slowly approaching them. The bad news is, they finally discovered why they had an unsettling feeling.

The new engine was a dark blue BR Class 42 Warship, which was the exact same model as Diesel Ten. And it wasn't just their model that was similar, for they also dawned a long and metal arm with three claws atop their cab. As the new engine took notice of Thomas and the Logging Locos, they stared at them suspiciously while gently tapping their claws together in thought.

The blue engine continued to creep closer, and finally stop when they were just a few feet away. Finally, their lips curled into a friendly smile.

"Hi!" they spoke, their voice friendly and feminine.

"U-Uh…hello," Thomas muttered before smiling politely, and tried to forget his fear, "I-I'm Thomas. It's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too. Name's Fern," the female greeted.

"Huh—you're pretty cheery for a diesel," Dash admitted under his breath.

"Don't be rude!" Bash snapped at his twin brother.

"Oh, he's fine. I get that a lot, anyway," Fern reassured with a chuckle.

"Fern, this is Bash, Dash and Ferdinand. They're the Logging Locos that work on Misty Island," Thomas explained.

"Ok. Never heard of either of those things, but sounds cool!" Fern went on, but then gasped with realization, "Shoot, I forgot! I was supposed to clear a fallen tree at Henry's Tunnel! …Uh, do you think you guys could show me the way?"

* * *

Upon arrival at Henry's tunnel, Fern and the others were surprised to see just how big the fallen tree was. If it was just a bit larger, it would have easily blocked off the other tunnel.

But not wanting to waste much time, Fern approached the trunk of the tree while the claws on her arm spread out to make way for a hidden buzz saw. Once the saw was unsheathed and spinning, she lowered her arm and slowly cut through the thick tree.

Thomas and the Logging Locos watched in amazement, for they had never seen an engine bearing such equipment before. Sure, Diesel Ten had come pretty close, but they were glad that he was never given a buzz saw.

It wasn't long before the tree trunk was cut into smaller pieces, which allowed Fern to pick them up and place them into a pile beside the track.

"Alright, that's that mess cleaned up. What's next?" Fern questioned while sheathing her buzz saw.

"We've still got a lot of lines to clear on Misty Island. You up for it?" Dash asked with a smirk.

Fern was just about to answer when the sound of horns echoed in the other tunnel, and multiple diesel engines raced out of the tunnel in a blur. They were so fast that Fern and the others didn't have time to make out the details of the engines, let alone tell who they were.

"Who were those guys?" Fern spoke slowly, assuming that Thomas or the Logging Locos would know more about anyone or anything on this island than she did.

"I don't know, but we'll have to worry about that later," Thomas regretfully informed, as he and the others began to make their way towards Misty Island.

* * *

Surprisingly enough, not a lot of engines were injured after all of the storms, which left Victor with more time to clean the Steamworks without having to worry about any patients.

But that doesn't mean that he couldn't get any visitors. In fact, the group of engines that darted through Henry's Tunnel had set their minds on coming to the Steamworks in hopes of finding something important to them. And when Victor finally noticed them waiting in the entrance, he was confused and curious about their features. Victor could count at least four engines, and they all appeared to share them same models of BR Class 40s and 45s. He also noticed that most of them looked a bit old, judging by the wrinkles and faded scars on their faces.

"Hello, there. Can I help you?" Victor kindly greeted while pulling up to them.

A red BR Class 40 with a large vertical scar over her left eye puffed forward, giving Victor the assumption that she was the leader.

"Maybe you can," the red engine replied, her voice raspy and heavy with a southern accent, "I'm lookin' for a diesel engine, and I'm gonna bet you know 'm."

"Well, what is his name?"

The red engine chuckled, "I don't think I gotta tell you that 'cause you'll know exactly who I'm talkin' about when I saw he's big, bad—and clawed."

Victor's eyes widened in realization. She could only be referring to one engine, and anyone and anything that were affiliated with him usually meant trouble.

"Um…I'm afraid the engine you're looking for isn't here," Victor nervously replied.

"Then where is he?" the red engine hissed demandingly.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am. I don't know. Perhaps you could look somewhere else?"

"You might be right." The red engine paused, and looked back at her cronies. "Let's go. We're wastin' time here."

With that, the red engine and her group finally left the Steamworks, leaving Victor alone with his fear. If these strange engines really were looking for Diesel Ten, he guessed that horrible consequences were going to follow. Victor couldn't even tell who to be more scared of now. The new engines or Diesel Ten?

* * *

Fern figured a place called "Misty Island" would be a bit foggy, bit it was even foggier than she anticipated. Not that she was complaining; if anything, the serene environment was beautiful to her. She always loved nature, and an island covered in peaceful forests like this one was no exception.

But despite wanting to take a slow stroll down the line to take in the sights, the Logging Locos urged her on to show her where there were more fallen trees to pick up. Once again, she didn't complain and didn't hesitate to help clean up their railroad.

And like before, Fern's kindness surprised the Logging Locos since they were used to so many other diesels being devious dickheads. Eventually, they couldn't take the unexpected kindness from Fern much longer, and approached her to find out more about her.

"You know, we really meant what we said earlier," Bash was first to speak.

"About what?" Fern inquired with a cocked brow, as she continued to saw away at a dead tree limb across the tracks.

"About you being pretty nice for a diesel. We don't have a lot of those around here," Dash pointed out.

"Yeah, especially compared to Diesel Te-."

"Ferdinand!" Bash and Dash cut off their dopey coworker with a snap, who was quick to shut his mouth when he remembered that an engine as evil as Diesel Ten was supposed to be kept secret from most outside forces. They simply didn't want him, or any rumors spread about him, to scare off any visitors.

"Compared to whom?" Fern urged, even dropping what she was doing to focus on the others.

The Logging Locos exchanged nervous glances before eventually sighing in defeat, knowing that trying to hide anything from Fern now would be pointless.

"There's this one diesel who's the worst of all," Bash began.

"Yeah, he's really nasty, and he's got a giant claw like you," Dash pointed out.

"Really?" Fern asked while looking up at her own claw in confusion, "I knew a few diesels like me were equipped with claws, but I didn't think there'd be one all they way out here."

"Well, there is, and he's awful. I bet he's got enough skeletons in his closet ta be considered a serial killer," Ferdinand stated with paranoia.

"He sounds charming," Fern muttered sarcastically.

"You won't be sayin' that once you actually meet him," Bash protested warningly.

"If he's as dangerous as you say, why not just get rid of him?"

"It's not that easy. He's always been too slippery for anyone to catch him," Dash explained.

"Let alone move him to a place," Ferdinand added flatly.

"Besides, most of us are too scared to even confront him," Bash quickly pointed out.

"Well, I'm willing to see just how bad he is myself. Where is he?" Fern questioned sternly.

"H-He's usually at the Dieselworks, but you're not allowed there unless you're a diesel that needs fixing," Dash argued.

Fern realized that the Logging Locos probably weren't going to show her where this evil diesel was so easily. So, she looked around for a moment and eventually spotted a set of buffers on a nearby siding. Without hesitation, Fern sped towards the buffers, and rammed into them hard enough to crack one and knock the other right off.

The Logging Locos stared with wide eyes and dropped jaws at her sudden actions, unable to fathom why she, or anyone for that matter, would be this desparate to get to Diesel Ten.

"My buffers are broken, which makes me a diesel that needs fixing. Do you mind taking me to the Dieselworks now?" Fern stated dryly.

As much as they wanted to keep such a nice engine like Fern away from someone as awful as Diesel Ten, the Logging Locos knew they couldn't refuse taking a broken engine to get repaired. So, the three engines begrudgingly took Fern back to Sodor and led her to Diesel Ten's lair.

* * *

**Diesel Ten may be a bit more reformed by now, but I think we all know that Fern has no idea what she's gotten herself into. Also, any guesses as to who the strange group of engines who visited Victor may be?**

**Until the next chapter, I'm TRikiD, bye-bye!**


End file.
